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Naval
Industry News - UK |
UK: “No Type 26 deal until there is value for money” |
By Stelios Kanavakis - Senior Defence Analyst Last week’s decision for “Brexit” had its first effects visible on UK’s defence planning. During a discussion at the House of Commons regarding the Type 26 programme, Defence Minister Philip Dunne stated that the UK “will enter into a contract once we have established best value for the taxpayer and a delivery schedule that can be met by the contractor.” |
 Royal Navy’s future Type 26 Global Combat Ship Frigate. Picture: BAE Systems |
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The construction of Type 26 frigates was planned to start this year but
as of 30 June, no start date has been confirmed. The delays are a result
of the programme’s overall cost and the government’s intention
to reduce it by half a billion pounds. Mr. Philip Dunne provided his answer when asked by MP Chris Stephens on whether he could confirm Press reports of leaked correspondence, according to which the MoD is looking to reduce the Type 26 programme’s cost by GBP500 million, while rejecting a proposal by BAE Systems to start the construction on time with savings of GBP270 million. Defence Secretary Michael Fallon was also asked by SNP MP Douglas Chapman to provide assurances that the Royal Navy has run out funds for the Type 26 contract and if that could also happen for Trident submarines as well…! The Defence Secretary stated that the schedule for the Type 26 has not been set yet and that “these are ships likely to cost between half a billion and a GBP1 billion each, and I am not going to sign a contract for these ships until I am satisfied that they represent good value for our navy and good value for the taxpayer." The Royal Navy plans to procure eight Type 26 units until 2023, under a GBP11.5 billion deal. The construction was until recently planned to start in December 2016. However, this timeframe could probably be extended by a year, threatening with a rise in procurement costs. Link to our updated Type 26 Global Combat Ship technical datasheet |
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